It is important that the guide assembly on a road vehicle that uses guide wheels to travel along a guide rail be stable, move without vibrating, and be as quiet as possible
Wear and tear on the wheels must be controlled, with wheels being changed as seldom as possible, ideally, during periodic technical checkups.
In addition, primarily for safety reasons, the design of the guide assembly and the shape of the wheels and guide rail must serve to minimize any tendency to derailment and they should be designed to reduce and preferably compensate for any force which, if amplified, would lead to derailment.
Replacing worn out parts in the guide assembly should be accomplished quickly and simply.
However, exceptional force on the guide wheels and/or the arm of the guide assembly cannot be eliminated.
Furthermore, the contact surfaces of guide wheels are equipped with a covering that is generally glued or tightly fitted around the perimeter of the wheel rim. The covering is made of flexible material such as rubber or a similar material and is used to provide electrical and sound insulation between the wheel and the rail and to ensure smooth operation.
Thus, the necessity arises for an arrangement or a safety procedure whereby when exceptional lateral forces are exerted on the guide wheel, the contact between the wheel and the rail will be only steel against steel, with the covering used as the travel surface on the guide wheel still be maintained in place.
The present invention has precisely this objective and responds to the problem posed above.